Flowerpot

ABSTRACT

A flowerpot having protrusion means and recess means in each of the sides of an angular, upper marginal portion. The protrusion means and recess means on each side are mirror-inverted symmetrical to the vertical center line of the respective side for engaging like protrusion means and recess means in an adjacent flowerpot. Downwardly tapering wall means extend from the upper marginal portion to the base of the pot.

United States Patent [151 3,683,549 Simmon 1 Aug. 15, 1972 [54]FLOWERPOT FOREIGN PATENTS 0R APPLICATIONS 1 lnventofl Gerhard SimmmWaitzstr- 18, 1,242,746 8/1960 France ..46/25 2000 Hamburg 52, Germany[22] Filed: March 17, 1970 Primary Examiner-Robert E. Bagwill [211 App].NOJ 20,375 AttorneyDeszoe Stemherz [57] I ABSTRACT [52] US. Cl ..47/34,220/234, 220/97 C a [51] Int. Cl. ..A0lg 9/02 A flowerpot havingprotrusion means and recess 58 Field of Search .220/97 0,214, 23.6;means in each of the sides of an angular, pp

206/65 R, 65 K; 47/34, 34.13; 46/25 ginal portion. The protrusion meansand recess means on each side are mirror-inverted symmetrical to the[56] References Cited vertical center line of the respective side forengaging UNITED STATES PATENTS like protrusion means and recess means inan adjacent flowerpot. Downwardly tapering wall means extend Lockwoodfrom the upper portion to the base of the 3,123,273 3/1964 Miller..47/4l UX pot 2,219,870 10/1940 J acobus ..47/34 2,799,972 7/1957Teixeira ..47/34 4 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures FLOWERPOT BACKGROUND OF THEINVENTION The invention relates to an entirely or partly rectangular orhexagonal flowerpot with a continuous upper marginal portion or ledgefor close group arrangement, particularly intended for breedingpurposes. Such wellknown flowerpots, as compared with entirely roundpots, have the distinction of allowing close arrangement. Apart from theutilization of space, however, good stability is also required. It istrue that rectangular or hexagonal flowerpots in close arrangementprovide better mutual support than round pots, but nevertheless theirstability leaves something to be desired.

Stability depends on ratio of base width (or diameter in case of a roundbase) to height of the pot. It grows with the base, i.e. with the widthof the pot in its base region. Such a pot with a wide base requires,however, a greater amount of expensive garden mould than a pot thattapers off in accordance with the form of the plant ball. Moreover, potswith a wide upper section and substantial conicity are frequently indemand in order to make sure that the plants find ample space for broaddevelopment above the garden mould, and, on the other hand, the potvolume and the shape of the pot correspond to the actual requirements ofthe root ball. If good stability is required, this demand cannot be metwith the wellknown pots and neither can the demand for as little use ofmould as possible.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The basic idea of the invention is thedevelopment of a flowerpot of the type as aforedescribed, which, ingroup arrangement, offers good stability even without a wide base.

According to the invention, the solution is that each side of the ledgeis provided with protrusions and the same number of correspondinglynegative recesses, the mutual arrangement of protrusions and recessesbeing similar on all sides, and on each side mirror-inverted symmetricalto the vertical axis of such side.

In the event of close arrangement of the rectangular, square ofhexagonal pots, provided that they are of the same size, the protrusionsof one pot fit into the opposite recesses of the neighboring pot, thusoffering the desired mutual support and consequently improved stability.

There are, of course, (cf. German registered design 1 857 288)flowerpots with alternately negative and positive fastening means ontheir edges that may be connected with neighboring pots, but thesefastening means consist of horizontally protruding tongues on the sides,the positive tongues being equipped with a snapbutton extension whichmay be pressed into the suiting bore of the negative opening. Thisconnecting device is practically useless because, firstly, itsproduction costs are too high, secondly, too much space remainsunexploited between the pots, and thirdly, handling is too complicatedbecause, when arranging the pots, care must be taken that each positivefastening means faces a negative one, and after that the fastening meanshave to be connected by pressing them together in snapfastener manner.The fastening devices interfere also with the disconnecting of the pots.

In contrast to those pots, the arranging of the pots as presented by theinvention requires no special care at all, because each side of the potfits any other side of a pot, so that each pot fits the arrangement ofthe other pots in any possible position. The protrusions and recesseseven fit automatically into each other, when the pots are being arrangedclosely, so that the closing of the mutual connections does not requireany attentive care either. In the same way as has hitherto been the casewith the known pots described at the beginning, the pots can be arrangedclosely in an easy manner; thedesired connection and support resultsautomatically. In the same way the pots can be disconnected withoutdifiiculty. According to the invention the protrusions and recesses areformed in such a way that their surfaces offer elements with aconsiderable horizontal directional component because these surfaceelements of the protrusions and recesses support each other and likewiseoffer supporting resistance to a vertical relative movement caused byneighboring pots. Such a vertical relative movement would also occur inthe event of a collective tipping movement in one direction byneighboring pots, so that this characteristic feature of the invention,too, guarantees increased stability. That the surface elements have aconsiderable horizontal directional component in the sense of theinvention is proved by the fact that they create the supportingresistance to the vertical relative movement mentioned above. Even aninclination of only 30 from the vertical axis, or even less, in thissense may develop an adequate horizontal directional component.

The flowerpot as presented by the invention should suitably be producedfrom thermoplastic material, preferably by a deep-drawing process. Theprotrusions and recesses may easily be worked into the material duringthe drawing process, or afterwards. Owing to the mutual support lent bythe pots they may be highly conical and taper off similar to the shapeof a funnel which, apart from the saving of expensive garden mould, alsoguarantees a better retention of water. Frequently, particularly in thecase of dried-up mould, a crack develops between the garden mould withthe root ball, and the inner pot wall, where the water will quickly rundown in the case of a steep wall, without sufficiently soaking the ball.The conicity intended by the invention avoids, or at least reduces thedevelopment of such cracks. To further improve water retention or thesoaking of the contents of the pot in accordance with a furthercharacteristic feature of the invention, the pot inside walls can beprovided with steps, the step surfaces advantageously ascending to theinterior of the pot, e.g., at an angle of l0l 5 against the horizontalline. This is a safe measure against the development of a top-to-basecrack between the contents of the pot and its inner wall, and the waterflowing down any crack will be forced into the direction toward the rootball.

When, at the beginning, it was stated that the pot should have arectangular or hexagonal shape, this fact mainly concerned the shape ofthe upper edge or ledge. The part of the pot that tapers ofi beneath theupper edge or ledge may have a round or, in continuation of the ledge,angular cross section, the angular shape recommending itself since inthis case the base will further improve stability. The protrusions andrecesses should be preferably arranged in such a way that the pots canbe stacked easily. This can be done, for example, by letting the ledgeprotrude from the main body of the pot by a certain length which roughlycorresponds to the depth of the recesses.

The recesses can also be replaced by openings, the edges of the openingsfitting the similarly shaped lower and, if need be, upper parts of theprotrusions on the sides.

Apart from the advantages mentioned above, the pot as presented by theinvention has all the wellknown advantages of pots that fit without anygaps. In addition, it should especially be mentioned that the closelyarranged pots as presented by the invention have such a stability thatthey can be collectively filled with garden mould and, thus, need not befilled individually. The increased conicity, made possible by theinvention, results in increased space between the lower parts of thepots, such space being closed towards its top by means of the pot edges,thus allowing easy supply of the pots with heat from below.

On the basis of advantageous design examples, the invention is describedhereinafter in detail with reference to the drawings in which BRIEFDESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 shows a hexagonal pot with oneprotrusion and recess on each side of the upper edge portion or ledge;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary topview of a ledge portion accordingto FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the contact area of two neighboring potsin the area of a protrusion and recess the section being taken asgenerally indicated at one of the protrusions by line AB in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a topview of closely arranged pots of the type shown in FIGS.1 to 3;

FIG. 5 is a longitudinal section of a modified flowerpot according tothe invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Each pot consists of onecontinuous upper edge or marginal portion or ledge l with externalprotrusions 2 and recesses 3, sidewalls 4 of the body and a base. Theprotrusions and recesses are inversely similar and shaped in such a waythat they fit each other so that the lateral and lower surface elementsinteract in order to prevent the neighboring pots from making lateral orvertical relative movements. In the examples given they have the form ofprotrusions and recesses with a curved cross section and which on allsides taper off towards the bottom. FIG. 4 shows that the protrusionsand recesses of the pots always fit into each other, when the pots arearranged closely, irrespective of sides fitted. This is achieved by thefact that each side is inversely similar to the side that it faces, therecesses flaring outwardly and the protrusions having a complementaryshape as shown in the drawings. Preferably, the lateral parts of theprotrusions or recesses should be inclined towards the respective sideof the ledge to only such a degree that a pot may be placed withoutpressure in the angle formed by two pots that have already beenarranged. This inclination is 45 in the case of rectangular pots and 60in the case of hexagonal pots. The wider such angle, the safer thesupport created by neighboring pots. The inclination should, however,not be too wide in order to allow easy arranging of the pots. The sameholds true for the lower and, if need be, upper parts of the protrusionsand recesses about which it was stated above that it would be ofadvantage, if they have a considerable horizontal directional component.The lower and upper parts, indeed, do not have a critical angle that maynot be exceeded, which may be done in the lateral parts, so that even aninclination of towards the surface of the respective ledge may seempossible, but for reasons of profiling and easy handling an inclinationof approximately 4560 is recommended as can be seen in FIG. 3.

The examples shown in the drawings demonstrate that the sidewallsforming the body may taper off considerably in order to form arelatively small base. This does not jeopardize the stability of thepots owing to the ledge support as presented by the invention. As shownin the drawings, the sidewalls may form a body of inverted, generallyfrustoconical shape.

FIG. 5 shows an example in which the sidewalls have continuous internalsteps 5, the surfaces of which ascend towards the interior of the pot.

What is claimed is: r r

1. A flowerpot adapted for close group arrangement and suitable forbreeding purposes and the like, comprising a continuous angular, uppermarginal portion having a plurality of generally vertical sides, each ofsaid sides having a substantially vertical center line; downwardlytapering wall means connected to said upper marginal portion; and a baseconnected to said wall means each of said sides of the upper marginalportion being provided with means forming a protrusion convexly flaredtoward the pot exterior in a vertical plane cross-section of the pot cutthrough the protrusion and with means forming a recess concavely flaredtoward the .pot exterior in a vertical plane cross section of the potthrough said recess and corresponding in form to said protrusion formingmeans, the corresponding shapes of recess and protrusion being such thatwhen two such pots are nested the recess of one pot provides aresistance to tilting of the adjacent pot whose corresponding protrusionis nested therein, the arrangement of said protrusion and recess beingon all of said sides identical and on each of said sides mirrorinvertedsymmetrical to said center line of the respective side so that when twosuch pots are nested in side by side contact at any of their respectivewalls a bilateral tilting resistance is afforded at their respectiveupper marginal portions.

2. A flowerpot as defined in claim 1, which consists of uniformthin-section plastic material.

3. A flowerpot as defined in claim 2, wherein said wall means has atleast one step therein, and said step includes at least one internalsurface ascending towards the interior of said flowerpot.

4. A flowerpot adapted for close group arrangement in abuttingrelationship with adjacent, substantially identical flowerpots andsuitable for breeding purposes and the like, comprising a continuousangular, upper marginal portion having a plurality of generally verticalsides, each of said sides having a substantially vertical center line;wall means connected to said upper marginal portion and generally havingan inverted frustoconical shape; and a base connected to said wallmeans; each of said sides of the upper marginal portion being providedwith means forming a protrusion convexly flared toward the pot exteriorin a verticle plane crosssection of the pot cut through the protrusionand with means forming a recess concavely flared toward the pot exteriorin a vertical plane cross-section of the pot through said recess andcorresponding in form to said protrusion forming means, thecorresponding shapes of recess and protrusion being such that when twosuch pots are nested the recess of one pot provides a resistance totilting of the adjacent pot whose corresponding protrusion is nestedtherein, the arrangement of said protruding means and recess means beingon all of said sides identical and on each of said sides mirror-invertedsymmetrical to said center line of the respective side so that when twosuch pots are nested in side by side contact at any of their respectivewalls a bilateral tilting resistance is afforded at their respectiveupper marginal portions; each of said protruding means and recess meansbeing shaped so that said first mentioned flowerpot may be engaged with,and disengaged from, any one of said adjacent flowerpots by laterallymoving said first-mentioned flowerpot and said one of the adjacentflowerpots relative to each other substantially horizontally.

t i R

1. A flowerpot adapted for close group arrangement and suitable forbreeding purposes and the like, comprising a continuous angular, uppermarginal portion having a plurality of generally vertical sides, each ofsaid sides having a substantially vertical center line; downwardlytapering wall means connected to said upper marginal portion; and a baseconnected to said wall means each of said sides of the upper marginalportion being provided with means forming a protrusion convexly flaredtoward the pot exterior in a vertical plane cross-section of the pot cutthrough the protrusion and with means forming a recess concavely flaredtoward the pot exterior in a vertical plane cross section of the potthrough said recess and corresponding in form to said protrusion formingmeans, the corresponding shapes of recess and protrusion being such thatwhen two such pots are nested the recess of one pot provides aresistance to tilting of the adjacent pot whose corresponding protrusionis nested therein, the arrangement of said protrusion and recess beingon all of said sides identical and on each of said sides mirror-invertedsymmetrical to said center line of the respective side so that when twosuch pots are nested in side by side contact at any of their respectivewalls a bi-lateral tilting resistance is afforded at their respectiveupper marginal portions.
 2. A flowerpot as defined in claim 1, whichconsists of uniform thin-section plastic material.
 3. A flowerpot asdefined in claim 2, wherein said wall means has at least one steptherein, and said step includes at least one internal surface ascendingtowards the interior of said flowerpot.
 4. A flowerpot adapted for closegroup arrangement in abutting relationship with adjacent, substantiallyidentical flowerpots and suitable for breeding purposes and the like,comprising a continuous angular, upper marginal portion having aplurality of generally vertical sides, each of said sides having asubstantially vertical center line; wall means connected to said uppermarginal portion and generally having an inverted frusto-conical shape;and a base connected to said wall means; each of said sides of the uppermarginal portion being provided with means forming a protrusion convexlyflared toward the pot exterior in a verticle plane cross-section of thepot cut through the protrusion and with means forming a recess concavelyflared toward the pot exterior in a vertical plane cross-section of thepot through said recess and corresponding in form to said protrusionforming means, the corresponding shapes of recess and protrusion beingsuch that when two such pots are nested the recess of one pot provides aresistance to tilting of the adjacent pot whose corresponding protrusionis nested therein, the arrangement of said protruding means and recessmeans being on all of said sides identical and on each of said sidesmirror-inverted symmetrical to said center line of the respective sideso that when two such pots are nested in side by side contact at any oftheir respective walls a bi-lateral tilting resistance is afforded attheir respective upper marginal portions; each of said protruding meansand recess means being shaped so that said first-mentioned flowerpot maybe engaged with, and disengaged from, any one of said adjacentflowerpots by laterally moving said first-mentioned flowerpot and saidone of the adjacent flowerpots relative to each other substantiallyhorizontally.